Latest News
Monday meanderings: Going into their game Sunday in Philadelphia, the Chicago Bears knew the Detroit Lions and Green Bay Packers had lost. Meaning all the Bears needed to win the NFC North was to defeat the Eagles (who had lost the previous Sunday to Minnesota, the cellar dweller in the NFC North). Coming out of the game, the Bears (8-7) knew they had lost 54-11. Meaning they need a victory vs. visiting Green Bay on the regular season’s last Sunday to take the title.
Model Stephy C is still behind the Bears depsite their loss to Philadelphia.
* If nothing else, the Bears’ loss has the team perfectly positioned. Meaning the Bears now have the Packers overconfident heading into their season finale. Nicely played. OK, not really nicely played. Nicely rationalized maybe.
* And the Bears have to be feeling pretty good about the defense holding the Eagles to fewer than 60 points, no?
* Compare and contrast: the Bears being blown out by the Eagles or the Packers losing on a last-second field goal at home to Pittsburgh. Actually, none of it matters. The past is the past, the present is what counts because it is the only opportunity to have a future beyond the regular-season finale for the 2013 campaign.
* Speaking of the postseason, if it’s any consolation the Bears fans (and the guess here is that it is not), should their team actually reach the NFL playoffs, the Bears do not look like a team that will one postseason contest this year.
* Speaking of the Packers, it would seem unlikely that quarterback Aaron Rodgers will be sufficiently recovered from a broken collarbone to play against the Bears. Meaning Matt Flynn should be at QB. Not that it matters a whole lot against the Bears defense. After all, Bart Starr could come out of retirement and hand off to assorted Packers running backs, and that could suffice (a reminder: Philadelphia gained 289 yards on 36 runs vs. the Bears, who are beyond terrible in rushing defense).
* The mathematical computation department around here has calculated that the Eagles averaged 8 yards per carry. The football tactics around here — after much contemplation — believes if you can average 8 yards per carry, you probably don’t have to pass the ball to move downfield and score points. Yep, they’re on the ball around here, aren’t they?
* Speaking of offense, Eagles QB Nick Foles was 21-of-25 for 230 yards. Meaning he averaged 9.2 yards per pass. Once again, the football tactics department around here believes if you can average 9.2 yards per pass, you probably don’t have to run the ball to moved downfield and score points. Yep, the Bears defense was anything but on the ball against the Eagles.
* On the bright (?) side for the Bears, coach Marc Trestman was able to take out several of his offensive starters with more than eight minutes left in the game. Meaning Jay Cutler, Matt Forte, Brandon Marshall and Alshon Jeffery should be well-rested for Green Bay. Of course, that’s no guarantee the offense will play any better than it did vs. the Eagles, but at least Trestman made the move that most fans would have made. Which, presumably, is gratifying on some level for the fans, who did not experienced a whole lot of gratification Sunday.
* Not to say that the Bears defense has trouble keeping opponents out of the end zone, but the Bears have given up 40 or more points four times this season. In the last nine seasons, they had four 40-point or more games.
* On the bright (?) side for the Bears, it is almost impossible to imagine them playing worse than they did against Philadelphia. Then again, be careful because you might not want to underestimate how bad the Bears can be.
Here is where to go for a daily dose of non-gratuitous video (thanks to the extremely dedicated editorial and video departments at ElliottHarris.com):
Advertising opportunities are available on ElliottHarris.com. For information and rates, contact sales@elliottharris.com.